Tuesday, November 12

Dylan Leach
OLYMPIC RADIO NOT AS EASY AS ABC

Many were disappointed to read the news yesterday that the ABC would not broadcast the 2020 Tokyo Olympics due to budget cuts.

Whatever you may think of the national broadcaster when it comes to sport on the radio, they are pretty bloody good at it -from their iconic summer of Cricket to the Footy many sports fans know they can rely on ABC radio to get the job done.

But the ABC shouldn’t be playing the victim in this.

Sports rights are getting way out of control in terms of price and are resulting in poorer production as the broadcasters fork out the cash at the expense of the coverage itself.

The thing is, unlike the ABC, a commercial broadcaster can raise the funds through advertising (a thing some people at Aunty have never had to deal with) whereas the ABC needs to get its money from the taxpayer.

Is the ABC willing to axe niche programming on Radio National with a loyal audience in favour for two weeks of sports broadcasting?

Ita, if you’re reading this – we’d recommend it, but we know the stereotypical ABC cardigan-wearing, camomile tea-sipping and Tony Jones worshipping audience won’t have a bar of it and are ready to write letters to The Age/Sydney Morning Herald about it. (They probably don’t like Neds either)

In terms of access to the Olympics, ABC radio won’t be as big a loss to the games as it might have been if this were the case 15 odd years ago.

Multichannel has allowed Channel 7 to broadcast the games on more than one channel, Olympic apps will let you stream any event you want to watch and a little thing called the world wide web to see what’s happening at the games.

However, it will be a shame not to have a fine commentator like Quinten Hull or Alister Nicholson not call the 100 meters sprint on the wireless.

The outcry about the ABC ditching the Olympics proves one thing, live sport on the radio is still a big deal. 

 

The thoughts of Dylan Leach are not necessarily those of Neds and its parent company, GVC Australia.

SHOW US YA TIPS

The in-house dishlicker delicatessen has headed off to Gosford for those looking for a flutter and likes Time Violation in Race 3 for his daily best. 

“Time Violation has returned several pleasing efforts recently and looks ready to win at a price at Gosford ($7 at publish). A son of Dyna Double One, Time Violation recorded a smart win at The Gardens last month and has placed at his last three starts, all from difficult draws. The inside box tonight is ideal, and he looks up to the task”

Bet now: gosford race 3
Bushfire Appeal

It’s beyond awful what’s happening with the bushfires across NSW and QLD and we encourage punters to donate to an appeal to help families in need.